Adobe Flash is set to be phased out by 2020, will your company be ready? Many companies have interactive material on their website that’s driven by Flash. Or, they use the software internally for videos, how-tos, training materials and eLearning. By 2020, those things will not work anymore.

What is happening?

Adobe Flash will be phased out in the next few years, according to a blog post on BT.com. Due to security reasons, competition and software flaws that have popped up in the last few years, Adobe has decided to phase out Flash to make way for HTML5. HTML5 “…supports the same multimedia elements as Flash but without the mass of security issues. Web developers have begun moving across to HTML5 instead of Flash,” said BT.com author Jamie Harris.

Here is some good information from PCWorld.com’s blog author Mark Hachman:

Through the end of 2017 and into 2018, Microsoft Edge will continue to ask users for permission to run Flash on most sites the first time the site is visited, and will remember the user’s preference on subsequent visits. Internet Explorer will continue to allow Flash with no special permissions required during this time.

In mid to late 2018, Microsoft will update Microsoft Edge to require permission for Flash to be run each session. Internet Explorer will continue to allow Flash for all sites in 2018.

In mid to late 2019, Microsoft will disable Flash by default in both Microsoft Edge and Internet Explorer. Users will be able to re-enable Flash in both browsers. When re-enabled, Microsoft Edge will continue to require approval for Flash on a site-by-site basis.

By the end of 2020, Microsoft will remove the ability to run Adobe Flash in Microsoft Edge and Internet Explorer across all supported versions of Microsoft Windows. Users will no longer have any ability to enable or run Flash.

What does this mean for you?

Anything you use internally (or externally) that uses Flash will eventually stop working; in some cases, sites will not even allow the program to open.

What can you do?

AXIOM has been following this for a while and has partnered with a fast-growing and innovative company that will convert all of your Adobe Flash videos to HTML5. You won’t lose any training or on-boarding material, and anything customer facing will be preserved. No need to recreate the wheel, we can convert existing material in a fraction of the time it would take you to redesign an entirely new program.

Contact AXIOM if you have any questions about converting your files, we’d be happy to help!